Door-operating mechanism.



O. C. JOHNSON.

DOOR OPERATiNG MECHANISM.

APPLlCATION HLED MAR. 1?, i916.

Pmmm J 111 24, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

W a A W; m M M m T gwmmtoz {gm/30W i'h a. $0

futon W1 0. C. JOHNSON. DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 11, 1916.

Patented July 24, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 zm mm OB'VILLE C. JOHNSON, 0F EUR/ERA, ILLINOI3.

DUOR-OPERATlNG MECHANISM.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July at, rear.

Application filed March 17', 1918. Serial lilo. M,932.

useful Improvements in DoonOperating Mechanisms; and 1 do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention which is an operating mechanism for doors has for its object to provide simply constructed and inexpensive means of this class which may be used to advantage for opening and closing the doors of garages and locking them, the mechanism being operated by the weight of an automoblle passing thereover.

With this general object in view, the invention resides in certain novel features of construction and in unique combinations of parts to be hereinafter fully described and claimed, the descriptive matter being supplemented by the accompanying drawings which constitute a part of this application and in which: Y

Figures 1, 2 and 3 are vertical sections showing the application of the invention and illustrating its numerous positions while 1 opening and then closing a door;

til

,Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the plane indicated by the line ll of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view through one side of the door frame and parts immediately adjacent thereto;

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are detail vertical sections taken on the planes indicated by the in which rollers or the like 5 travel, said rollers being carried on the upright edges of a flexible door 6 of any preferred, con

struction, this door being normally closed but being adapted to be wound on a drum 7 to allow the passage of an automobile into i or out of the garage.

A sprocket chain 8 passes around a pinion 9 on the shaft of the drum 7 and around a sprocket 10' on a, horizontal shaft 11 adjacent the lower end of the frame 3, all of these parts being positioned on the interior of the garage as shown. lhe shaft 11 is equipped wlth a driving gear 12 which is operated by the construction to be hereinafter described, such construction constituting the most important features of the present invention. Although the specific connections shown and described between the gear 12 and the drum 7 are preferably used, other suitable means might well be provided for transmitting rotary motion and 15 being disposed end to end as shown and being pivotally connected preferably by securing longitudinally extending fingers 16 to the lovers 15 and by passing said fingers loosely through eyes 17 carried by the levers it (see more particularly Fig. 8). The lovers of each pair are fulcrumed between their ends as shown at 18, the location of the fulcrums being such as to normally cause the remote ends of said levers to lower as shown in Fig. 1, while the adjacent ends thereof will be spaced vertically from the floor of the building, a pit 19 being preferably provided for the purpose of allowing said last named ends of the levers to move downwardly to rotate the gear 12 through the instrumentality of a rack bar 20 which meshes with said gear, said bar being secured by means of an appropriate bracket 21 to any one of the levers above described.

By constructing the mechanism in the manner described, it will normally stand as shown in Fig. 1, in which position the door will be locked so that only an automobile A traveling onto the outermost levers 14 may open said door. As the aut mobile moves toward the door, its'weight will depress the inner ends of said levers 14: as shown in Fig. 2, thus causing the rack bar 20 to rotate the gear 12 which with the opera lents thereof, will so drive the drum 7 as to connections above described or the equivaraise the door 6. The automobile A now passes into the-building and travels along 1 the innermost levers 15, thus moving said levers from the position depicted in Fig. 2 to their normal position With the machine supported thereon. This return of parts to their original positions again closes the door,

as shown in Fig. 3 and looks the same. In removing" the automobile from the garage 1, a reversal of the operation described Will take place, and again leaves the door locked.

From the foregoing description, taken in connect1on with the accompanying drawings,

the construction and manner of operation of the invention will be readily understood and it Will be obvious that it may be 'appliedto equal advantage upon vertically and horizontally moving doors. The latter may be flexible or rigid as occasion may demand and obviously, numerous other types of connections between them and the operating levers may be used Within the scope of the invention as claimed. Also although a number of specific details have been shown and described, numerous changes may be made nseaeei without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I clafin: i t In a door operating mechanlsm, the combination of a pair of parallel levers fulcrumed centrally and normally disposed horizontally in a garage to support an auto mobile on their inner ends throughout the length of time it stands in said garage, an-

other pair of centrally fulcrumedlevers inserving to hold the door in closed POSltlOIL' In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

URVILLE C. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

C. C. Esme, F. J. KNIGHT. 

